Neha Wadekar

Child Forced to Watch Beheadings: Rare Inside Look Into the Mozambique Massacres – The Daily Beast (image)

Child Forced to Watch Beheadings: Rare Inside Look Into the Mozambique Massacres – The Daily Beast

March 10, 2021Articles

One of the first inside looks into the conflict in Mozambique, where armed militants are ravaging villages, decapitating residents, and leaving children traumatized and displaced.

Female Genital Cutting Is on the Rise During COVID in Kenya – VICE World News (image)

Female Genital Cutting Is on the Rise During COVID in Kenya – VICE World News

January 28, 2021Articles

COVID-19 is further complicating a global fight to end female genital cutting. Read my work from northern Kenya, with photos by Will Swanson and support from the Pulitzer Center on Crisis Reporting.

Women in Kenya Are Using Knitting Needles to End Their Pregnancies. Blame Donald Trump. – Mother Jones (image)

Women in Kenya Are Using Knitting Needles to End Their Pregnancies. Blame Donald Trump. – Mother Jones

October 8, 2020Articles

American politics have long influenced abortion rights abroad, but health care providers in Kenya say no U.S. president has done more damage to their cause than Donald Trump. The Trump administration’s iteration of the Global Gag Rule is exceptionally severe, pulling millions in funding from groups that prevent unsafe abortions and protect women’s health. Meanwhile, local anti-abortion activists are borrowing tactics from American groups like Operation Rescue, designed to shame local abortion providers and the patients they serve. Read my investigation with Mother Jones and Type Investigations.

Mothers, sisters, wives: Kenyan women lead fight against police violence – The New Humanitarian (image)

Mothers, sisters, wives: Kenyan women lead fight against police violence – The New Humanitarian

September 3, 2020Articles

‘When we lose our fear, they lose their power!’ Meet the women fighting back against police brutality in Kenya.

Kenya Is Trying to End Child Marriage. But Climate Change Is Putting More Young Girls at Risk – TIME Magazine (image)

Kenya Is Trying to End Child Marriage. But Climate Change Is Putting More Young Girls at Risk – TIME Magazine

August 13, 2020Articles

In north-east Kenya, climate change is driving up rates of child marriage. I traveled to Marsabit county for TIME Magazine to meet the child brides of this region and tell their stories. Video by the talented Vania Turner and Will Swanson.

Kenya’s teen pregnancy crisis: More than COVID-19 is to blame – The New Humanitarian (image)

Kenya’s teen pregnancy crisis: More than COVID-19 is to blame – The New Humanitarian

July 13, 2020Articles

‘When you talk about women’s empowerment… it’s going to be affected by what is happening right now.’

Read my latest on the systemic challenges – including lack of funding for reproductive health services and a lack of comprehensive sexuality education in Kenyan schools – contributing to a long history of high teenage pregnancy rates in the country.

Balcony churches: Kenyans find new ways to worship in lockdown – The Guardian (image)

Balcony churches: Kenyans find new ways to worship in lockdown – The Guardian

June 29, 2020Articles

With no date set for religious buildings to reopen, an innovative priest brings his own brand of musical service to apartment complexes.

Coronavirus threatens China’s Belt and Road. What happens when it wants half a trillion dollars back? – Los Angeles Times (image)

Coronavirus threatens China’s Belt and Road. What happens when it wants half a trillion dollars back? – Los Angeles Times

May 20, 2020Articles

The COVID-19 pandemic has unleashed a global recession that threatens the colossal international loan program that is a symbol of China’s growing prestige and a centerpiece of President Xi Jinping’s reign. The Belt and Road Initiative — China’s effort to finance nearly half a trillion dollars in new infrastructure across Asia, Africa, Europe and Latin America — took flight during a period of global expansion and easy travel that has now slammed into a sober reckoning. Beijing faces mounting calls to reschedule loans for shipping hubs, electrical plants and transport links that look unsustainable as economies struggle and globalization slows. 

The Coronavirus Is Cutting Off Africa’s Abortion Access – Foreign Policy (image)

The Coronavirus Is Cutting Off Africa’s Abortion Access – Foreign Policy

May 4, 2020Articles

The collapse of medical supply chains has been a catastrophe for women in developing countries. Lockdowns have made matters worse.

Kenya’s 3D printing community is making Covid-19 equipment to fill a deficit as caseloads rise – Quartz (image)

Kenya’s 3D printing community is making Covid-19 equipment to fill a deficit as caseloads rise – Quartz

April 15, 2020Articles

As Kenya prepares for a rise in novel coronavirus cases, 3D printing companies are designing and printing personal protective equipment (PPEs) and parts for medical devices to address the expected deficit in the country. Read my latest for Quartz Africa here.